Refrigerator



(No Model.) l 3 Shets-Sheet 1. J. P. EMERY.

RBFRIGERATOR.

No. 356,226. Patnted Jan. 18, 1887.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. P. EMERY.

REFRIGERATOR. N0. 356,226. PatentedJan. 18, 1887..

(No Model.) 3 SheetsSheet 3.

J. P. EMERY.

REPRIGERATOR.

No. 356,226. .I i l j 27W4,l9a/ented Jan 18 1887 Z L b3 @www iv4 PFTEns, Pme-umagnpher. washington D Q FFICE.

PATENT i J AMES I). EMERY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

REFRieERAToa.

SPECFIC'ATION forming part of Letters Patent No.-355,226, dated January 18, 1887.

Appncmimi filed January 26,1886.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, Jarras P. EMERY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and Stateof Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Refrigerators, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to refrigerators wherein an ice-chamber is arranged above a storagechamber, and valved openings which provide means of communication between said upper and lower chambers are controlled automatically by opening and closing the doors of the storage-chamber to retain the cold air in and prevent the admission of warm external air to the ice-chamber when the doors of the storagechamber are open, and to effect a better circulation of air between the chambers when the doors of the storage-chamber are closed.

The `object of my invention is to provide the greatest possible` area of open and direct communication between the upper and lower chambers when the exterior doors of the storage-chamber are closed; to admit of a free circulation of air between the upper and lower chambers; to provide automatic means for closing communication between said chambers by the act of opening the door of the storagechamber, and which will close such communication in closingthe door; to provide means for regulating the area of openingbetweenthe chambers; to provide ample area and a direct and free downward course for the currents of cold 'air in their passage `from the upper to the lower chamber; to provide protected passages of ample area and suitable direction for the escape of the expanded and saturated air from the lower to the upper chamber; to provide novel meansfor draining the door of the ice-chamber, for catching the drip and conducting it away from the refrigerator; to provide a novel construction of double licor, the upper section of which supports the ice and the lower section of which is providedl with hinged paus which constitute in themselves shutters or valves to open and close communication between the upper and lower chambers, deliectors for conducting the ascending and descending currents of air, and pans or receptacles for catching the water from the melting` ice and preventing it from gopening into the ice-chamber A2.

Serial No. 189.855. (No model.)

refrigerator in the line w w of Fig. 2, looking toward the front; Fig. 2, a sectional plan in the line x .fr of Fig. l; Fig. 3, a similar representation in the line y y in Fig. l; Fig. 4, a vertical sectional elevation in the line .e z of Fig. l, with the upper part of the ice-chamber broken away 5 Fig. 5, a plan of the upper section of the floor, seen from below, showing the chamber for the escape of the warmed and vaporized air from the lower chamber to the side Walls and thence to the ice-chamber; Fig. 6, a plan of one of the shutters, seen from below, which compose a section of the lower portion of the flooring, showing novel means for securing and releasing their pivotal bolts.

The walls A of the refrigerator are built to form a rectangular lor other suitably formed inclosu re,wi th a suitable door, B, opening into the refrigerator-chamber A and a door, B, Bearingposts C are built into the corners of the compartment and support a rectangular frame,D, which nts snugly around the interior of the chamber. The frame D is formed with crossstrips d d, arranged alternately with and at equal distances from each other across the frame,to divide the door into an even number of rectangular spaces. Each of the spaces is provided with a shutter or valve, E, pivotally supported at its ends by sliding bolts e,which fit into bearing-sockets e2 in thc side of the frame, and are held securely in their sockets by a bar, e3, pivoted midway of its length to the under side of the shutter, to swing thereon and abut against the inner-ends of the bolts. Vhen the bar c3 is swung out of the way, the bolts can be withdrawn and the shutters removed from the frame. (See dotted lines at Fig. 6).

The shutters E are supported midway of their width to swing together in pairs across the openings in the frame D, and when closed rest with the lower edge of their remote sides upon the upper side of the depressed strips d',

and with the upper edge of ktheir adjacent sides resting upon the under side of the strips d. (See dotted lines at Fig. l.) Three sets or IOO pairs of shutters are shown in the drawings, and it will be seen from the above-described arrangement that each set slope slightly downward from their outer to their adjacent edges. The shutters are operated simultaneously by a bar, F, hinged to hangers F, secured to the side of the frame D, and extending along one side of and beneath the entire length of the frame. Rodsf connect the swinging sides of the bar F with the remote sides of the shutters E, and serve to open and close the shutters by the swinging movement of the bar F. When the door B is opened,the bar F is pushed away from the frame D to close the shutters by a spring-rod, G, secured midway of its length to the under side of the frame D, which presses with its free ends upon the upper side of the bar F and holds it down to close the shutters when the bar F is not acted upon by the door. The free ends of the springrcd G are held between plates g, and thus prevented from slipping oii' from the upper side of the bar when the latter is swung upon its hinges, as shown in Fig. l. y A hanger-plate, I-I, secured to and depending from the bar E, carriesa friction roller H', which is arranged about midway of the length of the bar and opposite to the upper corner of the swinging side of the door B. A camplate, I, is secured to the upper corner of the swinging side of the door B,to project inwardly therefrom and push beneath the roller H,to swing the bar F and open the shutters as the door B is closed, and to hold the shutters open while said door is closed, and recede from the roller to allow the shutters to close as the door B `is opened, as hereinbef'ore described.

The plate I is made adjustable upon the door B by means ol a slot, z', in the plate, and a setsscrew, z", which passes through the slot and clamps it at any required elevation upon the door, by which means the bar F may be lifted to a greater or less height, and the shutters may be opened to any required degree to thus regulate the area of opening provided for the passage of air-currents from one chamber to the other.

The shutters E are 'formed with depressed upper surfaces, into which are fitted sheetmetal pans c3, to catch the drip from the melting ice, supported in a suitable manner above the pans. The pans c are each provided with dischargespouts e at their adjacent lowest corners, and are arranged above a trough, K, suspended upon brackets K, secured to the wall ofthe storagechaxnber A', the said troughs serving to conduct the drip-water away from the refrigerator by means of suitable drainpipes. (Xot shown.)

A slatted frame, L, of well-known construction is arranged above the frame E to support the ice and admit of a free circulation of air around and beneath it. The slatted frame L rests upon the upper side of the frame M, and is provided with cross strips Z at its ends, against which rest the lower ends of the slat ted end frames, L, the upper ends of which rest upon the side walls of the ice-chamber. Slat ted side frames, L, rest upon 'the slatted tloor L at their lower ends, and are supported at their upper ends by the side walls of the icc box, and thus provide a slatted crib for holding the ice from contact with the surfaces of the iioor and wall in a well-known manner.

The frame L may rest directly upon the frame E; but to provide a better circulation for the oppositely-moving currents of air, and to properly deflect and conduct the drip-wa ter from the slatted frame L to the drip-pans ci", a frame, M, of novel construction is interposed between the frame E and the frame L, to rest upon the frame E and closely fit the inner sides of the walls of the refrigerator. The frame M is formed of side rails, m, which lit closely against the side walls, A, of the refrigerator, and transverse bars m', which are arranged at equal distances from each other across the frame to 'provide a series of rectangular openings, in?, arranged oppositely to the shutters E of the lower frame.

A supplemental frame composed of side rails, m, supported upon and near the ends of the transverse bars m parallel to the side rails, m, of the main frame, and cross-bars m, secured to the ends of the side rails, m, and arranged immediately above the end transverse bars,

m', of the main frame, provides an upper rimto the main frame, and also provides air-passages m upon the sides, and air-passages m" upon the ends, of the frame, through which the warm-air currents may pass from below to the IOC) inner Walls o' the icescharnber A2, and follow l said walls to the ice-chamber, to be cooled and condensed. The end cross-bars, m m", of the supplemental frame are secured to the side rails at a short distance from the ends thereof, to provide the air-passages m, above described, and the lower outer edges oi' the end crossbars, m4, are beveled to admit of the free movement of the air to the passages m,which air is deflected and directed theretoby the two shutters at the end of the refrigerator. The un der side of the outeredges ofthe side rails, on, and the upper edges of the inner sides of the side rails, m, are similarly beveled to admit of the free movement of the air to the air-passage m5 from the channels m8.

The sides of the rectangular openings m are bordered by beveled strips of molding m7, secured to the transverse bars m and to the side rails, m, which thus form open panels with inwardlyfsloping sides, to deiiect the drip-water to the pans e, secured to the upper sides of the shutters E.

The frame bars and moldings are covered by a sheet-metal cap, M2, made to snugly t and conform to the upper and inner surfaces of the frame, and provide a smooth watertight non-corrosive surface for the water to drip upon from the superposed ice and conduct it to the pans suspended beneath the frame M.

The molding-strips m7 slope inwardly from.

the transverse bars m and provide airpas- IIC) 356,226 y i a sages or channels ms along the under sides of said bars and moldings and'beneath the sheetmetal cap Il '2, for the passage of upwardly-ascending air-currents to the air-passages nr" m5 and side walls of the ice-chamber.

The frames D and M may both be easily removed when desired for any purpose, and replaced without deranging the parts in any way.

The circulation and action of the aircurrents within the refrigerator are as follows: The doors B B of theice-chamber and storage or refri geratin g chamber, respectively, being closed, the shutters E will be tilted at angles in opposite direct-ions by the door B, and the condensed dry air of low temperature will force its way downwardly from the upper or ice chamber and be concentrated and directed by the upper inclined sides of the shutters to the lower or storage chamber in the direction of the yarrows shown by full lines; and the vaporized air from below of a higher temperature; and consequently lighter specific gravity, will force its way upwardly in the direction of the dot-ted arrows beneath the inclined under sides of the shutters, by which it will be deflected and directed upwardly to the channels m, formed in the under side of the frame M, which conduct the said air-currents laterally to the air-passages m, formed at the sides of the frame M, from whence these air-currents escape to the ice-chamber, where the air is again condensed and cooled by contact with the ice and caused to again descend to the chamber below. The ascending air, which strikes the two shutters at the ends of the refrigerator, will be deflected by said shutters and directed by the air-passages m to e icechamber. Vhen the door B of therefrigerating-chamber is open, the shutters' will completely close communication between the upper and lower chambers, and the warm exterior air which fills the lower or storage chamber is thus prevented from rushing up into the icc-chamber, and the refrigerated air of the ice-chamber is closely pentup and prevented from escaping to the chamber below so long as ,the door B of said chamber is open. In closing the door of the storage chamber the shutters will swing open across the entire area beneath thefloor and form inclined deflectors, which will direct and concentrate both the upwardly and downwardly ,moving currents to facilitate their displacement one for the other and permit the pent-up volume of cold air, which, because of its coniinement in the ice! chamber, has fallen to a much lower temperature than that of the refrigerating-chamber,to escape with its full force and accumulated density and dryness, to suddenly and com-1. pletely displace the air of theistoragechamber before the dryness ofthe descending currents can be materially affected by commingling with the upwardly-moving saturated currents, by which means the air in the storage-chamber is kept dry and pure, as the impure gases and I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patentl. In a refrigerator, the combination, with the upper and lower chambers, of a divisioniioor arranged between the chambers formed of an apertured frame-work, and a series of hinged shutters arranged in pairs beneath the apertures, and adapted to open and close together in opposite directions, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. The combination, with a refrigerator, of a frame-work adapted to fit the inner walls of the inclosure to be applied to and removed therefrom, and provided with shutters hinged thereto, to operate substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. In a refrigerator, the combination, wlth the upper and lower chambers, of hinged shutters arranged to open and close communication between said chambers, an arm operated upon by the movement ofthe door,and an adjustable plate secured to th'e door to operate the shutters and regulate the extent of their movement, substantially as described.

4. In a refrigerator, the combination, with the upper and lower chambers, of a divisionfloor formed of an open frame-work, the under side of which is channeled to provide conduits for the escape of vaporized and heated currents of air tothe sidewall passages, and valved openings between said channeled frame-work, substantially as and for the purpose described.

5. In a refrigerator, the combination, with the upper and lower chambers, of a divisiontloor formed of an open frame-work providedV with channels for the escape laterally of the upwardly-moving currents of air, and hinged shutters arranged in pairs beneath the openings in the frame-work to deflect both the up- IOO IIO

wardly and downwardly moving currents, substantially as described. Y

6. In a refrigerator, the combination, with the upper and lower chambers, of a divisioniioor formed of an open frame-work provided with channels for the escape laterally of vaporized and heated currents and passages between the side walls and open frame-work communicating with said lateral passages, substantially as and for the purpose described.

7. The combination, with the perforated floor of a refrigerator, of pans hinged thereto to catch the drip, and also yserve as deflectors for currents of air passing through openings in the door, substantially as described.

S. The combination, with the perforated floor of a refrigerator, of pans hinged thereto to provide valves which close upon themselves to cut off the flow of air through the openings in the floor, which serve to deflect said air-currents, and which provide drip-pans beneath the perforated iioor,substantially as described.

9. The shutters, in combination with slid- In testimony whereof I affix my signature 1 ing bolts supported at their ends to provide in presence of two Witnesses. pivotal connection with the exterior frame, and

the longitudinal bm? c, pivotally connected to JAMES P. EMERY. 5 the under side oi the shutter to abut against lVitnesses: 1

the inner ends of the sliding bolts, substan- ARTHUR SMITH, tially as and for the purpose described. A. S. DEYENDORF. 

